Molding method



March 1943- I w. J. VA'N ROSSE'M 4, 8

MOLDING METHOD Ozfiginal Filed Nov. 15, 1940 Principal Heat fie mo ved J, v WA]. TEE rZ lam E0555 INVENTOR ATTORN Y Patented Mar. 23, 1943 MOLDING METHOD Walter J. .van Rossem, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Surgident, Ltd., Los Angeles, Cailfi, a corporation of California Original application March 15, 1940, Serial No.

Divided and this application Novem- ,ber 18, 1941, Serial No. 419,565

3 Claims.

This invention relates to molding methods and flasks and pertains more particularly to molding methods for preparing highly accui'ate molds of thermoplastic hydrocolloid materials or the like, from patterns such as those comprising dental castings or models of stone, plaster of 'Paris, or the like. This application is a division of my earlier application Serial No. 324,109, filed March Thermoplastic molding compositions, particularly those 'employed in dental practice, are quite resilient, and are thus subject to resilient deformation under comparatively small-stresses. has hitherto been the general practice, in casting a mold of thermoplastic material from a plaster or stone pattern, to place the pattern on a base plate of metal, surround the casting with a metal flask, and pour the heated (fluent) thermoplastic material-into the flask to surround the portions of the pattern from which the mold is to be made. condition cools to its point of solidification shrinkage takes place. This shrinkage corresponds generally to the thermal contraction of the solvent liquid, water in the reversible hydrocolloids, some other solvent in reversible nonof the mass-after the marginal portions havesolidified. This means that the central portions of the mass will continue to contract (by cooling) after the marginal portions have solidified, causing stresses to be set up in such central portions. These stresses are usually ofsumcientmagnitude to cause the marginal portions to be resiliently drawn inwardly toward the center, and after the entire body of thermoplastic has cooled it is noted that in some portions the mold has been pulled away from the pattern, resulting-in an inaccurate mold.

The pattern or model is customarily saturated with hot water before the thermoplastic material is poured around it. This serves two purposes, first it displaces air in the pores of the model so that no air is released by the model when contacted with the thermoplastic material-to .form bubbles in the mold adjacent the model, and sec- As the fluent material in its sol.

aqueous colloids. After solidification takes place,

ond, it'prevents an immediate chilling of the thermoplastic into solidified condition upon contact with the pattern so that a faithful reproduction of the surface detail may be obtained. In view of the relatively large bulk of the pattern as compared with the volume of surrounding thermoplastic, the above-mentioned tendency for the marginal portions of the thermoplastic body to solidify prior to the central portions will be experienced even though the flask'is merely allowed to cool in the air (instead of immersing the same'in cool water).

It is a particular and important object of this invention to produce perfect molds by controlling the temperature'gradient through the mold in such manner that the thermoplastic molding material located adjacent the pattern is cooled more rapidly than that located at positions removed from the pattern.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method of producing molds from thermoplastic hydrocolloid materials or the like in which the heat flow from the hydrocolloid material is controlled in such manner that the material adjajacent the bottom of the flask and adjacent the pattern is chilled most rapidly, to produce a progressive outward solidification of such material, wherein the resulting stresses due to the contraction upon cooling are utilized to pull the molding material into close engagement with the pattern.

According to the method of the present invention, the casting operation is carried out in such manner as to obtain a progressive solidification of the thermoplastic molding composition outwardly from the surface of the pattern of which a reproduction is desired, by withdrawing the principal proportion of the contained heat from the composition through the pattern itself, all

as is more particularly described hereinbelow.

The present disclosure also pertains to an advantageous form of molding flask with which the method of the present invention may be practiced. In its'broadest preferred aspects a molding flask comprises a base member of high ther- I mal conductivity adapted to support the pattern in contact therewith, and a cap member associated with "the base member and extending above the pattern to form a cavity for the reception of the fluent thermoplastic material. The cap member comprises at least a portion adjacent the bottom thereof and extending therearound of lower thermal conductivity than the base member, which portion serves to thermally insulate the upper portion of the cap member from the base .member, In one specific embodiment the cap member may be wholly fabricated from material of lower thermal conductivity than the base member. t

Further objects and advantages of my invention will either be specifically brought out in the ensuing description or will be apparent therefrom. The accompanying drawing illustrates typical embodiments of a flask of my invention and the practice of my method, and referring thereto:

- tendency for the heat tofiow through the surface Fig. l is a vertical section of a moldingflask useful according to my invention, showing the mold as formed about a stone or plaster pattern, together with certain schematic representations illustrating the practice of the present method; and

Fig. 2 is an exploded'vertical section of a molding flask of the type used in the dental profession with which the method of my invention may be practiced.

Referring to Fig. 1, a flask with which my invention may be practiced is shown as comprising a base fabricated from a material having a high thermal conductivity such as brass. The base maybe constructed according to conventional lines in the form of a circular plate provided with an upturned edge 2| adapted to receive a cap member 22 which in thiscase is shown asa unitary member and includes both side wall means and the top cover means along with an upper reduced neck portion 23 provided with an opening 24 through which the thermoplastic material in its heated fluent state is introduced into the flask. By following the teaching of my invention the member 22 in all its parts may be produced from a single casting of plastic material such as Bakelite, and the thermal conductivity thereof is considerably less than the thermal conductivity of the base plate 20.

In preparing a mold with theapparatus illustrated in Fig. 1, for example, a stone or plaster of Paris pattern 25 is placed on the base 20 and locatedgenerally centrally thereof and in contact therewith. The pattern 25 usually comprises a stone or plaster of Paris cast of a full or partial upper or lower denture and usually has a surface which is somewhat greater-than the surface which is to be produced. That is, the pattern is usually provided with a base portion 26 which extends below the level of the actual surface to be repro- 29 or through the walls of the cover 22.

since the mold is cooled by extracting heat through the highly conductive base member 20 reached the solidification temperature.

duced. The base portion is usually fiat on itsi lower side so that it will rest firmly on the base member 20 and will provide a large contact area for heat flow. For example, the surface portion of the pattern to be reproduced may be located above line 21-21, and the base portion may be located below the line 21-21.

After the pattern has been placed in position,-

through the opening 24, this material being indicated by the widely spaced section linesat 28,

-andtheflaskisfilledtoanyconvenientleveLas to the level indicated at 29. The pattern is usually saturated with hot water for some time .beforeitisplacedontheplateflsothatthe material does not immediately solidify upon contactlng the pattern, for reasons-previously men 'Thofiaskisneltcooledtocausethsthermowhile surrounding the remaining portion of the mold with the cap 22 of insulating material, the principal portion of the heat removed from the material is removed through the bottom, as indicated by the arrows 32. The principal proportion of the heat containedin the material thenfiows inwardly towardand through'the pattern and the base member 20, as indicated by the flow arrows in the material, and a negligible portion of the heat in the material flows outwardly through the cap member in the direction indicated by the arrows 33. By'maintaining the outward fiow of heat through the plate 20 sufficiently greater than the outwardfiow of heat through the cap 22, as by maintaining a relatively high temperature difference between these two members, all portions of the material may be maintained at a temperature notless than the solidification temperature I of the material until adjacent portions of the material inwardly removed toward the pattern have For that reason the material will solidify first about the pattern and then progressively outwardly from the pattern.

Since the material solidifies first about the surface of the pattern to be reproduced and then progressively outwardly and because 'its shrinks upon cooling until reaching the gel condition or phase as pointed out above, it will set in tight engagement with the pattern and will be stressed toward the pattern. If the pattern is removed from the mold immediately after the mold solidifies, these stresses will be relieved by a generally inward movement of the mold and th resultant mold will be warped in relation to the pattern. In order to overcome this difliculty, the mold is allowed to stand for a time after it is known to have solidified before the pattern is removed During this period the stresses in the mold ar relieved by the plastic now of th material t the mold, which is an inherent characteristic 0; the thermoplastic material, and the materla. takes a permanent set in close engagement with the pattern so that the resultant mold is a high]:

plasticmaterialtogelorset. Thiscoolingmay" the flaskand the pattern. Asthe materialin the interior of the mold cooled to solidification, the accompanying shrinkage would tend to pull the mold away from the upper portions of the P ttern with the result that the feet.

-Ithssbeenthecustomtopourthethermomold was imperplastic mater 1.1 at a temperature as near as possible to the solidification temperature in remains in solstate for a sufficient time to contact all portions of thepattern.

Referring now to Fig. 2, the flask is shown as comprising a base member 4| usually of circular shape and provided with an upturned edge 42 adapted to receive a cap member comprising side-wall means 44 made up from a plurality of rings 44a and 44b. According to conventional constructions, the lower ring 44a is usually from one-quarter each to one and one-half inches in height and nests snugly against the base and within the upturned edge 42. This ring is usually provided with a smooth inner surface.

chosen. The upper ring 441) is usually provided with a downwardly extending lip 45 of reduced diameter which fits snugly within the ring 44a, and with a shoulder 46, which rests on the top ofv the ring 440.. The upper ring 44b is usually pro- -vided with inwardly projecting lands or rings 41,

so that the solidified casting will adhere to these rings and the rings may be used as protection for the casting when the bottom and the ring 440 are removed from the structure.

The cap member further comprises a top member 48 having a downwardly projecting lip 49 which is adapted to closely engage the inside of ring 44b and a shoulder 50 which is adapted to rest on'this ring. The top member is usually provided with an opening in the upper part thereof, through which the molding material may be poured in a heated fluent state. In order to increase the hydrostatic head on the material within the mold without the undue use of molding material, when such increase in head is desirable, an upstanding cylindrical member 52 of small diameter may be 'removably fitted in the opening 5|, and the molding material may be poured to a position adjacent the top of the member 52. The tops of such flasks are usually provided with suitable means for engaging the thermoplastic after it is poured andv gelled, either by means of a ring, land, or spaced projections suchas shown at 53.

A flask such as described in connection with Fig. 2 is usually constructed entirely from material of high thermal conductivity such as brass; To construct the above fiask in accordance with total area of the wall means and is usually located below the portion of the pattern about However, this results in voids adjawhich an accurate mold is to be obtained. For

this reason, when the lower ring 44a is fabricated from some material of low thermal conductivity such as "Bakelite, it is within the contemplation. of this invention to provide the lower portion of this ring with a metal reinforcement to decrease the tendency for breakage by chipping, etc. For practical purposes it is also desirable to fabricate the top member 48' from a material having a low thermal conductivity such Y as Bakelite.

It should now be obvious that the cover member may be omitted as long as the remainder of the flask is so constructed and cooled as to cause the extraction of the major portion of ductivity and to fabricate the ring-44a from material of, low conductivity as long as the above conditions are realized. It is also possible to fabricate the members 44a, 4th and 48 from material of high thermal conductivity and provide means for insulating them from the base 4| such as a gasket or rubber or the like between the ring it and the base 4|. This will be satisfactory as long as the difference in temperature between the side walls and the base can be maintained sufilciently great. In all ,of the above examples the wall means comprises at least a portion of lower thermal conductivity than the base member, located adjacent the bottom of the wall means and extending therearound, which serves to thermally insulate the wall means and preferably the major portion thereof from the base member.

fabricate the wall means from a material of high thermal conductivity and provide it with thermally insulating lining such as an anodic coating of rubber. With such or comparable constructions, the insulating lining is to be considered as the wall means of the flask, and the metal may be considered as a support or a protection for the coating.

It is also to be understood that the wall and cover portions of the flask need not be fabricated from rigid materials,- but that flexible or semi-rigid materials may be used. For example, they may be ,fabricated from rubber or from fabric impregnated with or embedded in rubber.

Obviously, my invention is subject to considerable modification, and for that reason I do not one example of my invention, the base 4| may be fabricated from material having a high thermal conductivity such as brass, as usually employed,

and the cap member comprising the rings 44a and band the too 48 are fabricated from a material having a low thermal conductivity such as a molded plastic material or molded rubber.

It is within my contemplation, however, to

fabricate the first ring 44a from brass or some other material having a high thermal conductivity. This will be satisfactory since the first ring usually comprises only a small portion of the 75 composition from a pattern having a surface to be reproduced, the steps which comprise: positioning said pattern; placing a body of heated thermosplastic molding composition in fluent condition about said pattern and in contact with said surface to be reproduced; cooling said body to a condition oisolidiflcation by withdrawing the' principal proportion of the contained heat therefrom through said pattern and maintaining the temperature of all portions of said body at a value not less thanthe solidification temperature of said molding composition until adjacent portions of said body inwardly removed towards said pattern have reached such solidification temperature, to cause a progressive outward solidification of said molding composition from said surface.

2. In the preparation, in a casting operation,

' of a mold of solidified thermoplastic molding composition from a pattern having a surface to be reproduced, the steps which comprise: placing a body of heated thermoplastic molding composition, in fluent condition, about said pattern and in contact with said surface to be reproduced;

and cooling the portions of said body outwardly removed from said surface to a condition of solidification by withdrawing the principal pr portion of the contained heat therefrom inwardly through said pattern, to cause a progressive solidification of said body outwardly from said-surface.

3. In the preparation of a mold of solidifiedthermoplastic material, in a casting operation,'f

from a pattern having a base portion and a surface to be reproduced located thereabove, the

steps which comprise: placing said pattern with -its. base portion downward in contact with a member of 'high thermal conductivity; covering said pattern to a position above said surface with 'said material in a heated fluent state; cooling said material to cause it to solidify by extracting heat from said member, the major portion of the total heat extracted from said mold being extracted through said member and the tem- WALTER J. vmRossEM. 

